Improve the Candidate Experience during the Hiring Process

Searching for a new job is one of the most stressful things most adults undertake. It’s right up there with moving home and having children. If someone has been fired, made redundant, or been out of work for a while, the pressure of finding new work can mount with every day that passes without a job offer.

Improve Candidate Experience

Of course, hiring managers and recruiters aren’t beholden to the same timescale as most candidates. This is especially so if they are filling thirty or more positions at any given time. Hiring managers may not have the time to make each candidate feel warm and fuzzy, but there are certain things they can do to make the process more transparent, more helpful, and less daunting.

1. Be Careful with Computer-Generated Autoresponders

You’re using technology to sift through swathes of resumes. Most candidates expect this. What they don’t expect is to receive a blunt, stock, automated email telling them they’ve been unsuccessful less than a day after they applied.

No one likes rejection. It’s a necessary part of recruitment, however, so it’s best when it’s done courteously.

Rejections can be automated, but messages should be well constructed. Don’t forget to thank the candidate for their application. And consider explaining that automation is necessary because it is not possible to write individually to every candidate.

2. Respond to Check-In Calls and Emails

If you’re swamped with potential employees, this can be a tough one to manage. Unfortunately, if you don’t respond to reasonably timed check in calls and emails, however, it does send the signal that you do not care about your candidates. If you don’t care about your candidates, how much do you care about the staff?

As a hiring manager or recruiter, you are on the front line of image and brand. Prospective employees interact with you first. If they are not feeling the love and respect from you, good candidates may focus their search elsewhere.

3. Give Feedback

A good candidate has taken the time to prep for your interview, dry clean his suit, buy herself a new outfit, and get his or her hair done. There may even have been teeth whitening involved. They’ve swatted up on your company, and prepared materials, such as a presentation or a portfolio. Getting a job is a lot of work!

After the interview, it’s not only courteous but also very helpful to give some indication of how it went. It’s very difficult to read interviewers while you are being interviewed. A few words about what went well does not give a candidate false hope; it makes them a better interviewee and a better employee. Any feedback will be appreciated.

With the rise of technology and automation in the hiring process, it’s important to remember that human lives and needs are at the core of the process. Treat others how you would like to be treated, and you’ll be projecting a fantastic image for your organization.